7 Reasons (A Little) Stress Can Be Good For You

Being under chronic stress can wreak havoc on your health, but short-term stress isn't so terrible. Some of life's greatest joys — getting married, having a baby — can be stressful as well as exciting. Here, 7 reasons why stress shouldn't stress you out.

1. Stress gives life its zingWe are quick to blame stress for a variety of problems, such as heart disease, ulcers, abdominal obesity, and dementia. But Hans Selye, a Hungarian endocrinologist, initially coined the term "eustress," defining it as "stress that is healthy, or gives one a feeling of fulfillment or other positive feelings. Daniel Kirsch, Ph.D., president of the American Institute of Stress, agrees that positive aspects of stress are often overlooked. "Marriage or a job promotion are stressful situations but in a positive way," he says. "We may feel stressed and a little afraid but were also excited. Those who try to avoid it at all costs have it all wrong. Eustress is what gives life meaning and hope."

2. Stress makes you more socialIn a 2012 study, researchers at the University of Freiburg in Germany reported that subjects who were put under stress  either by public speaking or having to complete a math test  showed significantly more positive social behavior than control subjects who were not places in stressful situations. They were also more likely to trust others, behave reliably, and share resources.

3. Stress improves your memoryWhen youre under short-term stress, the hormone cortisol spikes, which acts as a light bulb in the brain. Suddenly youre able to think more clearly. One 2013 study conducted at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico, found that working memory in particular improved in participants experiencing stress-induced rises in cortisol compared with those who had no increase. "An example of working memory is your ability to remember the correct numbers when a friend gives you her telephone number," says lead researcher Melissa Stauble. Unlike chronically elevated cortisol levels, those lasting for only a few hours wont lead to extra ab flab.

4. Stress enhances creativityIn order to be creative about anything, whether its writing a poem or developing a new strategy for work, eustress helps you do that by focusing your thoughts. "It puts you in the here and now, and your mind is able to tune out distractions more easily," says Kirsch. "Youre also more willing to take chances, which gives you the courage to express creative ideas."

5. Stress makes you more alertThe stress response  the body's hormonal reaction to danger, uncertainty or change  evolved to help us survive. "In the short term, stress gives us both the physical and mental energy needed to handle the situation at hand. For example, it can make you more vigilant for threats when youre driving or make you feel more 'on' during a job interview," says Stauble.

6. Stress boosts your immune systemThat same fight-or-flight stress response stimulates immune activity according to results from a promising animal study conducted at the Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection at Stanford School of Medicine. When laboratory rats were subjected to mild stress, there was a massive mobilization of several key types of immune cells into the bloodstream as well as to the skin and other tissues. "This large-scale migration of immune cells, which took place over just two hours, is comparable to the mustering of troops in crisis," says Firdaus Dhabhar, Ph.D., lead researcher and an associate professor of psychiatry.

7. Stress helps your body recover fasterOther research conducted by Dhabhar on knee surgery patients showed the same immunity-boosting results as the rat study. Patients who experienced a short-term stress response during surgery had a faster recovery compared with those who did not. What can you do in preparation before going to the hospital? "It appears that sleeping well and reducing chronic stress may increase the likelihood of a robust 'good' stress response," says Dhabhar.

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